Frontiers workers Josie and May had hardly taken their last sips of tea before the tiny, fluted glasses were whisked out of their hands. The tray of cardamom-spiced shortbread and baklawa disappeared from the small living room too.

“Now we are ready,” declared Manal, the hostess. “We want to learn about Jesus from the Injil.”

Josie and May had met Manal the week before when the Muslim woman saw them walking by her home. She invited them in for tea. During their visit, Manal shared that she had injured her back and couldn’t stand up without help.

May shared stories of Jesus healing those who couldn’t walk and offered to pray for Manal in His name. She gratefully accepted.

“These stories about Jesus are from the Injil,” Josie said when they finished praying. “Do you know anyone who would like to hear them and learn more from God’s Word?”

Manal had eagerly listed several neighbors she could invite and agreed to gather them for a Bible study the next week.

Now sitting in Manal’s home with eight Muslim women, May asked one of them to read part of the Genesis creation story. Then the women talked about the passage, and Josie asked some questions to help them find ways to apply it to their lives. At the end of their time, Josie suggested they pray together.

“Yes, we must pray because Jesus has the power to heal,” Manal declared. “Last week we prayed, and God lifted the pain off my back.” She stood up and sat down several times, showing how easily she could move now.

After praying together, the women agreed to meet again just a few days later.

As Josie and May walked away, grateful for the women’s open hearts, they heard a man yelling for them to stop. They turned, afraid that they had angered someone, but they recognized Manal’s husband running after them.

“Bring men with you the next time,” he wheezed once he caught up with them. “I want to study God’s Word too. I can even get the other women’s husbands to join me.”

Seeing that God was moving in the hearts of this Muslim community, Josie and May promised to bring men from their team to meet with Manal’s husband and other men on their next visit. Since then, both groups have gotten together to hear stories from the Bible and learn more about Jesus Christ.

Pray:

• Pray that Muslim women like Manal will invite more friends to study God’s Word together and follow Christ. And ask God to open the hearts of their husbands and families too.
• Pray for Frontiers teams as they coach new believers to start Bible study groups for their friends and family.
• Ask the Lord to send more teams of workers to start movements of faith in Christ in Muslim communities.

**This account comes from a long-term worker. Names and places have been changed for security.**

Main photo on iStock

Original article: https://frontiersusa.org/blog/hope-after-jesus-heals